Automatic potato cutter and planter.



PATENTED JAN. 9, 1906.

J. J. PUTNEY.

AUTOMATIC POTATO CUTTER AND PLANTER.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 20. 1905.

4 SHEETSSHEET 1.

N0- 809,396. PATENTED JAN. 9, 1906. J. J. PUTNBY.

AUTOMATIC POTATO CUTTER AND PLANTER.

APPLIOATION FILED 1 1112.20, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0. 809,396. PATENTED JAN. 9, 1906. J. J. PUTNEY.

AUTOMATIC POTATO CUTTER AND PLANTER. APPLICATION FILED FEB. 20. 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

Nb. 809,39 6. PATENTBD JAN. 9, 1906. J. J. PUTNBY.

AUTOMATIC POTATO CUTTER AND PLANTER.

APPLICATION FILED T16R20, 1905.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4. g:

UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

JOHN J. PUTNEY, OF STUART, IOWA.

AUTOMATIC POTATO CUTTER AND PLANTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1906.

Application filed February 20,1905. Serial No. 247,044.

Iowa, have invented a new and useful Automatic Potato Cutter andPlanter, of which the following is a specification.

My object is to provide a machine on a carriage-frame adapted to beadvanced in a field. in the manner of an automatic corn-planter toautomatically out seed-potatoes and plant two parallel rowssimultaneously.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combinationof elements T and subcombinations, as hereinafter set forth, pointed outin my claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichFigure 1 is a side view of the machine and shows the positions ofoperative devices relative to each other and the carriage and runners orfurrow-openers. Fig. 2 is a top view of the main or wheel portion of themachine and shows a reciprocating potato-carrier and 3 means foractuatin said carrier. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectiona view of thepotato-carrier and its support and potato-cutters fixed to the support.It also shows the feed-hop-j per on top of the reciprocating potato-canrier. Fig. 4 is a top view of the reciprocating cutter-carrier that ismounted in a plane be-. low the potato-carrier and shows how it is:operated by means of a grooved cam-wheel, and a lever. Fig. 5 is a topview, and Fig. 6- a side view, of a modified form of potato-cut ting andseed-dropping mechanism. Fig. 7- is a side elevation with parts brokenaway.

The numerals 10 designate the side pieces of a rear carriage or wheelframe; 12, the front cross-piece; 13, the rear end cross-piece, and 14 acentral cross-piece. An axle 15 is rota-' tably mounted on the rear endportion of the frame and traction-wheels 16 fixed on the ends of theaxle. A front or runner frame 17 is pivotally connected with the frontends of the side pieces 10 of the rear or carriage-wheel frame, andrunners or furrowopeners 18, adapted to serve as furrow-openers, arefixed to the runner-frame in parallel position. Braces 19 extend fromthe runner-frame 17, as shown in Fig. 1, in which the upper front end ofthe brace is broken off. A pole 20 is fixed to the center of therunner-frame 17 and an arm 21 is rigidly fixed to the rear end of thepole and a toothed segment 22 fixed on the freeend of said arm to aid inraising and lowering the runner -frame and runners as said standards.

' required to facilitate turning the machine about at the end of afield. A shaft 23 is mounted in bearings on the side pieces 10 of thecarriage-frame, and a gear-wheel 24 is fixed to said shaft to engage thesegment 22, and a hand-lever 25 is fixed to the end of the shaft in sucha manner that a person on the seat 26 can operate the lever as requiredto raise and lower the runners byimparting motion to the rotary shaft. Arack 27, fixed to the side piece 10 of the frame, and a pawl carried bythe lever retain the lever and shaft stationary. Standards 28 are fixedto the sides 10 of'the carriage-frame in rear of the ruuner-frame 17 anda reciprocating frame and cutter-carrier 29 is mounted in rear ofCutters 30 are fixed on the top and end portions of the said carrier ina horizontal position and cutters 31 in a vertical position in such amanner that the upper cutters 30 will cut potatoes into halves and thelower cutters 31 will quarter the halves when the cutter-carrier isactuated.

To impart rectilinear reciprocating motion to the cutter-carrier 29, agrooved cam-wheel 32 is fixed to the axle 15 and a lever 33, pivoted toa cross-piece 34, fixed to the sides 10 of the carriage-frame and itsshort arm extended into the cam-groove, and its long arm is slidably andpivotally connected with the cutter-carriers 29 by means of a loop 35,fixed on the top and center of said carrier, as shown in Fig. 4, or inany suitable way. A clutch mechanism 36 is connected with the cam-wheel32 and the axle 15, as shown in Fig. 2, and as required to make the camwheel operative and inoperative by means of a lever 37 within reach of aperson on the seat 26. Platforms 38 are fixed to the sides 10 of thecarriage-frame to extend outward from the standards 28for supporting areciprocating potato-carrier 39, mounted thereon. Open-ended tubularpotato-conductors 40 are fixed to the platforms 38 to extend downwardfor conveying potatoes to the cutters 30 and 31. The potato-carrier,slidably connected with the platforms 38, has parallel extensions 41 atits ends, between which potatoes will drop from a hopper to be pushed bythe carrier into the open conductors 40 in the platform 38, as required,to fall into contact with the cutters 30 and 31.

To impart rectilinear reciprocating motion to the potato-carriers 39, alever 42 is pivoted to a cross-piece 43, fixed to the sides 10 of thecarriage-frame, as shown in Fig. 2, and its IIO front end is extendedinto an aperture 44 in the center of the potato-carrier (shown in Fig.3) as required to operate said carrier, and the rear end of the leverhas a cross-head 45 and rollers 46 journaled thereto for engaging cams47 on the sides of the grooved camwheel 32.

The cutter-carrier 29 has metal plates 48 fixed to its ends and providedwith slots 49, and the parallel parts at the side of the slots inclineddownward to produce a bed upon which potatoes will lodge, as indicatedby dotted lines in Fig. 3, as required to be retained in proper positionto be cut into pieces by the reciprocating cutters 30 and 31. Standards50 are fixed to the side pieces 10 of the carriage-frame and a hopper 51fixed to the said standards and the standards 28 as required to carryseed-potatoes. The hopper has an inclined bottom that causes thepotatoes to roll forward and to drop into the open ends of the carrieras it is reciprocated under the front part of the hopper and to lodge onthe platforms 38 until they are cut and the pieces then dropped throughthe conductors 40 and allowed to fall therethrough into the hollowseed-conveyers 52, fixed on top of the rear ends of the runners 18, tobe thereby delivered at regular intervals of time and space into thefurrows opened by the runners. Having thus set forth the purpose of myinvention and the construction and function of each operative elementand subcombination, the practical operation and utility of the machinewill be obvious to persons familiar with the art to which it pertains,and

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a potato cutter and lanter, a carriage-frame composed of rigidparallel side pieces and cross-pieces mounted upon a rotatable axle, arunner-frame hinged to its front end, a pole fixed to the runner-frame,an arm fixed to the rear end of the pole, a toothed sector fixed to therear end of the arm, a rotatable shaft mounted on the carriage-frame, ahand-lever fixed to the end of the shaft, a rack fixed to the side ofthe frame and a pawl carried by the hand-lever to engage the rack,arranged and combined to operate in the manner set forth, for thepurposes stated.

2. In a potato cutter and planter, a carriage-frame composed of rigidparallel side pieces and crosspieces mounted upon a rotatable axle, arunner-frame hinged to its front end, a pole fixed to the runner-frame,an arm fixed to the rear end of the pole, a toothed sector fixed to therear end of the arm, a rotatable shaft mounted on the carriage-frame, agear-wheel on said shaft and means for actuating the shaft, standardsfixed to the carriage-frame and a hopper having an inclined bottom fixedto the standards, arranged and combined to operate in the manner setforth for the purposes stated.

3. In a potato cutter and planter, a car'- riage-frame composed of rigidparallel side pieces and cross-pieces mounted upon a rotatable axle, arunner-frame hinged to its front end, a pole fixed to the runnerframe,an arm fixed to the rear end of the pole a toothed sector fixed to therear end of the arm, a rotatable shaft mounted on the carriage-frame, agear-wheel on said shaft and means for actuating the shaft, standardsfixed to the sides of the carriage-frame, a hopper having an inclinedbottom fixed to the standards and platforms fixed to the sides of thecarriage frame to extend outward from the standards, arranged andcombined to operate in the manner set forth for the purposes stated.

4. In a potato cutter and planter, a hori zontal reciprocatingcuttercarrier having fixed cutters, a grooved cam-wheel on a rotatableaxle, a lever pivoted to the carriageframe and the short arm of thelever extended into the cam and the long arm slidably and pivotallyconnected with the cutter-carrier, arranged and combined to operate inthe manner set forth for the purposes stated.

5. In a potato cutter and planter, a horizontal reciprocatingcuttercarrier having fixed cutters, a grooved cam-wheel on a rotatableaxle, a lever pivoted to the carriageframe and the short arm of thelever extended into the cam and the long arm slidably and pivotallyconnected with the cutter-carrier, and plates fixed to the'end portionsof the cutter-carrier to retain potatoes in position to be engaged bythe fixed cutters on the end portions of the said carrier, arranged andcombined to operate in the manner set forth for the purposes stated.

6. In a potato cutter and planter, a horizontal reciprocatingcutter-carrier having fixed cutters, a grooved cam-wheel on a rotatableaxle, a lever pivoted to the carriageframe and the short arm of thelever extended into the cam and the long arm slidably and pivotallyconnected with the cutter-carrier, plates fixed to the end portions ofthe cutter-carrier to retain potatoes in position to be engaged by thefixed cutters on the end portions of the said carrier and platformshaving open-ended potato-conveyers fixed above the said potato-cutters,arranged and combined to operate in the manner set forth for thepurposes stated.

7. Ina potato cutter and planter, a horizontal reciprocatingcuttercarrier having fixed cutters, a grooved cam-wheel on a rotatableaxle, a lever pivoted to the carriageframe and the short arm of thelever extended into the cam and the long arm slidably and pivotallyconnected with the cutter-carrier, plates fixed to the end portions ofthe cutter-carrier to retain potatoes in position to beengaged by thefixed cutters on the end portions of the said carrier, platforms havingopen-ended potato-conveyers fixed above the said fixed potato-cutters,arranged and combined to operate in the manner set forth for thepurposes stated.

8. In a potato cutter and planter, a horizontal reciprocatingcutter-carrier having fixed cutters, a grooved cam-Wheel on a rotatableaxle, a lever pivoted to the carriageframe and the short arm of thelever extended into the cam and the long arm slidably and pivotallyconnected With the cutter-carrier, plates fixed to the end portions ofthe cutter-carrier to retain potatoes in position to be engaged by thefixed cutters on the end portions of the said carrier, platforms havingopen-ended potato-conveyers fixed above the said fixed potato-cutters, areciprocating potato-carrier mounted on top of said platform and meansfor actuating said potato-carrier and a hopper above the saidpotato-carrier for feeding potatoes to said potato-carrier, arranged andcombined to operate in the manner set forth for the purposes stated.

9. In a potato cutter and planter, a reciprocating potato-carrier, acam-Wheel fixed to the rotatable axle of a carriage, a lever pivotallyconnected With the carriage-frame and its front end connected with thereciprocating potato-carrier and its rear end provided With a cross-headand rollers j ournaled to the end of the cross-head to engagecam-surfaces at the sides of the cam-Wheel, arranged and combined tooperate in the manner set forth for the purposes stated.

JOHN J. PUTNEY.

Witnesses:

J. P. TURNER, B. H. SHINBUR.

